Valtteri Bottas led a Mercedes front row lockout on F1's last visit to Baku in 2019, and even managed to convert that pole position into a fine victory ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton.
However, it was Red Bull which set the pace in Friday practice as the championship returned to Azerbaijan after two years, with Sergio Perez leading a 1-2 for the energy drinks giant ahead of teammate Max Verstappen.
Hamilton ended up more than seven tenths off the pace in seventh, with Bottas another tenth adrift in 10th.
Coming into Baku, Charles Leclerc had played down Ferrari's chances, saying he expects the Prancing Horse to go "back to reality" after its starring performance in Monaco. But contrary to his expectations, both Leclerc and Carlos Sainz looked strong on Friday, becoming the main challengers to the Red Bull duo.
What time does qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix start?
Qualifying will begin at Baku at 16:00 local time (+4 GMT). The three-part session will last approximately one hour.
- Date: Saturday, June 5, 2021
- Start time: 12:00 GMT / 13:00 BST / 14:00 CEST / 14:00 SAT / 15:00 EAT / 08:00 ET / 05:00 PT / 22:00 AEST / 21:00 JST / 17:30 IST
Can’t find your country or region in the list? Check the schedule page for the broadcast times in your local timezone.
2021 Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix session timings in different timezones
| Session | GMT | BST | CEST | ET | PT | AEST | JST | IST |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FP1 | 08:30 | 09:30 | 10:30 | 04:30 | 01:30 | 18:30 | 17:30 | 14:00 |
| FP2 | 12:00 | 13:00 | 14:00 | 08:00 | 05:00 | 22:00 | 21:00 | 17:30 |
| FP3 | 09:00 | 10:00 | 11:00 | 05:00 | 02:00 | 19:00 | 18:00 | 14:30 |
| Qualifying | 12:00 | 13:00 | 14:00 | 08:00 | 05:00 | 22:00 | 21:00 | 17:30 |
| Race | 12:00 | 13:00 | 14:00 | 08:00 | 05:00 | 22:00 | 21:00 | 17:30 |
How can I watch qualifying?
Formula 1 is broadcast live in nearly every country around the world.
Europe:
- Austria - Servus TV / ORF
- Belgium - RTBF
- Denmark - TV3 / TV3 Sport / Viasat
- Finland - MTV
- France - Canal+
- Germany - Sky
- Hungary - M4
- Italy - Sky
- Netherlands - Ziggo
- Poland - Eleven Sports
- Portugal - Eleven Sports
- Spain - Movistar / DAZN
- Sweden - Viasat
- Switzerland - SRF / RSI / RTS
- UK - Sky Sports F1
Americas:
- USA - ESPN
- Canada - RDS / TSN / Discovery Velocity
- Latin America - Fox Sports / ESPN
Asia:
- China - CCTV / Tencent / Guangdong TV
- India - Star Sports
- Japan - Fuji Television
- Russia - Match TV
- Turkey - S Sport
- Rest of Asia - Fox Sports
Oceania:
- Australia - Fox Sports / Network 10
- New Zealand - Spark Sports
Africa:
- Africa - SuperSport
Can I stream qualifying?
Viewers from selected countries can subscribe to F1 TV to stream qualifying on a device of their choice. Some local broadcasters such as Sky TV (UK), Movistar (Spain), Disney+ Hotstar (India) also offer their own on-demand service.
Live commentary
Motorsport.com will bring the latest updates from Baku throughout the weekend, including live commentary during qualifying on Saturday.
FP1 results:
| Cla | Driver | Chassis | Time | Gap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1'43.184 | ||
| 2 |  Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1'43.227 | 0.043 | |
| 3 |  Carlos Sainz Jr. | Ferrari | 1'43.521 | 0.337 | |
| 4 |  Sergio Perez | Red Bull | 1'43.630 | 0.446 | |
| 5 |  Daniel Ricciardo | McLaren | 1'43.732 | 0.548 | |
| 6 |  Pierre Gasly | AlphaTauri | 1'43.757 | 0.573 | |
| 7 |  Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1'43.893 | 0.709 | |
| 8 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1'43.996 | 0.812 | |
| 9 | Fernando Alonso | Alpine | 1'44.777 | 1.593 | |
| 10 | Mercedes | 1'44.891 | 1.707 | ||
| 11 |  Kimi Raikkonen | Alfa Romeo | 1'44.943 | 1.759 | |
| 12 |  Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo | 1'45.092 | 1.908 | |
| 13 |  Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 1'45.234 | 2.050 | |
| 14 |  Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | 1'45.384 | 2.200 | |
| 15 |  Sebastian Vettel | Aston Martin | 1'45.415 | 2.231 | |
| 16 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | 1'45.446 | 2.262 | |
| 17 | George Russell | Williams | 1'45.452 | 2.268 | |
| 18 | Nicholas Latifi | Williams | 1'45.774 | 2.590 | |
| 19 | Mick Schumacher | Haas | 1'46.899 | 3.715 | |
| 20 |  Nikita Mazepin | Haas | 1'46.945 | 3.761 | |
| View full results | |||||
FP2 results:
| Cla | Driver | Chassis | Time | Gap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | 1'42.115 | ||
| 2 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1'42.216 | 0.101 | |
| 3 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Ferrari | 1'42.243 | 0.128 | |
| 4 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1'42.436 | 0.321 | |
| 5 | Pierre Gasly | AlphaTauri | 1'42.534 | 0.419 | |
| 6 | Fernando Alonso | Alpine | 1'42.693 | 0.578 | |
| 7 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo | 1'42.941 | 0.826 | |
| 8 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1'43.018 | 0.903 | |
| 9 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | 1'43.020 | 0.905 | |
| 10 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | 1'43.130 | 1.015 | |
| 11 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1'43.156 | 1.041 | |
| 12 | Kimi Raikkonen | Alfa Romeo | 1'43.220 | 1.105 | |
| 13 | Daniel Ricciardo | McLaren | 1'43.298 | 1.183 | |
| 14 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 1'43.812 | 1.697 | |
| 15 | Sebastian Vettel | Aston Martin | 1'43.881 | 1.766 | |
| 16 | Mercedes | 1'44.184 | 2.069 | ||
| 17 | George Russell | Williams | 1'44.557 | 2.442 | |
| 18 | Nikita Mazepin | Haas | 1'45.563 | 3.448 | |
| 19 | Mick Schumacher | Haas | 1'46.095 | 3.980 | |
| 20 | Nicholas Latifi | Williams | 1'46.983 | 4.868 | |
| View full results | |||||
